Revolutionary War on Wednesday is the twenty-second installment to the Magic Tree House series. The book is preceded by Civil War on Sunday and succeeded by Twister on Tuesday.
Synopsis[]
Using their magic tree house, Jack and Annie travel back to the time of the American Revolution and help General George Washington during his famous crossing of the Delaware River.
Chapters[]
- Wednesday
- Day or Night?
- It's Time
- Commander-in-Chief
- The Letter
- Crossing the Delaware
- Spies!
- These Are the Times
- Flash!
- This Peaceful Place
Plot[]
On Wednesday, Annie and Jack returned to the magic tree house, they had to find three more different types of writings to save Camelot. After their previous adventure during the Civil War, Jack felt uneasy about their next journey, which would take them to the time of the Revolutionary War.
The tree house transported them to a cold, twilight setting near a river, and the children magically changed into Colonial winter attire. As Jack read about the Revolutionary War from the book provided by Morgan le Fey, they spotted soldiers warming themselves around a nearby campfire. Hoping to remain unnoticed until they figured out which side the soldiers supported, Jack and Annie were soon discovered by the captain. Fortunately, the soldiers were patriots. When they headed out to meet their leader, the children decided to follow them discreetly. Jack found a depiction of this scene in his book and realized they had arrived on December 25, 1776, just before the patriots prepared to cross the Delaware River. As the leader delivered a motivational speech quoting patriot Thomas Paine, Jack recognized him as George Washington. While Jack continued reading about Washington, Annie rushed ahead to speak with him. When a soldier caught Jack writing in his notebook, he became suspicious. In an effort to escape, Jack blended into the crowd and ran into the captain again.
George Washington giving a letter to Jack.
The captain urged Jack to find Annie and go back home. He also asked Jack to deliver a letter to his family, in case of his death, since they came from the same area of Pennsylvania. The letter included a quote from Thomas Paine: "The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph." Jack eventually found Annie in Washington's boat. Although Annie was certain they could help, Jack insisted that their mission was complete and they should leave. As Jack tried to persuade her, the boat departed, and they were on their way across the Delaware River with the soldiers.
As they rowed, the children read about the secret mission in the book. The storm intensified, and Washington and the generals discussed whether they should abandon the mission. While Jack tried to keep Annie quiet, she spoke up, explaining how the plan would succeed. Washington was both surprised and upset to find children among his troops, especially ones who seemed to know their secret mission. The earlier soldier accused them of being spies. Jack realized that revealing how they knew this information would be impossible, so he read aloud the letter from the captain and recited the rallying speech. He encouraged the soldiers to push forward, despite the hardships. Washington thanked Jack for reminding him of his own words but insisted the children must leave. Jack and Annie returned to the other side of the river on the next boat and found their way back to the tree house.
Back at home, Jack felt proud to have helped. They left the captain’s letter in the tree house as one of the writings they needed to gather. Morgan had left another note, asking them to return on Tuesday. On their walk home, Jack and Annie reflected on Thomas Paine’s words.
Notes on time and place settings[]
- This book takes place three days after Civil War on Sunday.
Trivia[]
- This book is dedicated to John, Susie, Jack, and Elliot Foley.